Karthus/Background
Lore Karthus is a terrible creature who was once a mortal so obsessed with death that he eagerly embraced the gift of undeath. Now in his unlife as a lich, Karthus is closer to his beloved grave than he ever imagined. He commands magic with oblivion as its source, and seeks to bring his grim truth to the rest of the world: only in death does life gain clarity and purpose. Even as a boy, Karthus was different. There was a darkness within him that could not be denied. The young child clung to the shadows and shunned the company of others. He snuck into the funerals of strangers, and spoke to their tombstones in the cemetery. He sought out corpses of animals to preserve and memorialize them, creating a grim collection of morbid art. Karthus volunteered to tend to the sick and dying, though his intentions were not to help, but to closely witness the passing of those who were beyond help. Ultimately, he went so far as to elaborately stage his death, and he secretly observed his own funeral with intense fascination. When others discovered what Karthus had done, they were so shocked and disturbed that, in a way, he became truly dead to them. Karthus found himself fully rejected by the living. His isolation only served to fuel his obsession. Karthus delved further into his exploration of death, and became fascinated by the legends of the Shadow Isles. There, it was said, the specters of the deceased continued on in unlife everlasting. Possessed by these tales, he knew he had to discover for himself if they were true. Journeying to those dreaded isles, Karthus soon found himself wandering through the mist, overcome by the surreal beauty of the place. He felt as if he had finally come home. He had always chased the elusive purity of the moment of death, when life passed and in a single instant achieved meaning. Karthus saw that undeath was like that moment, preserved in dread stillness forever. He had discovered his destiny, to cross over the veil and leave the living behind for eternity. Something awoke in the Shadow Isles that day, when Karthus did something no other creature had ever done: he willingly gave his life over to undeath. When he reentered the world, Karthus had become the embodiment of his own obsession. An undying lich with the keys to life and death, he seeks to bring his dark requiem to the world. Quotes ;Upon selection * ;Attacking/Movement * * * * * * ;Taunt * ;Joke * Co-op vs. AI Responses '''Match start' *"Let me show you an alternative to life." Player team victory *"GG!" Player team defeat *"You have earned a page in my book." Special *"My song is death." Twisted Treeline Altar Responses If captures the Altars on Twisted Treeline, the Altars may give the following unique responses: ;West Altar * * * ;East Altar * * * * Development * ''Karthus was designed by Guinsoo. Karthus concept 1.jpg|Karthus Concept 1 Karthus concept 2.jpg|Karthus Concept 2 Karthus Concept.jpg|Karthus Concept 3 Previous Lore 1st Bio The vast quantities of physical magic that were consumed and destroyed during Valoran's numerous Rune Wars have scarred much of Valoran. Many locations far from civilization have been morphed into hazardous and dangerous locales. The Howling Marsh is one of these places, and the self-appointed overlord of this land is the lich known as Karthus. It is thought that Karthus was a mage who, in life, was foolish enough to enter the fetid waters seeking his fortune, and that he was forever transformed by whatever dark magic permeates the swamp. Karthus now rules over his swampy dominion with an iron (albeit skeletal) fist. Visitors are not welcome, and those who are not scared away by the lich's terrible power most likely end up as one of the undead themselves... skeletons and zombies in Karthus' growing army of eternal servants. On the darkest of nights, Karthus is said to sing the tales of those who have succumbed to the swamp, past and present. Karthus' tenure in the League of Legends is one of the more unusual ones in the history of the League. First, it is highly unusual that a lich who was known for isolation and hatred of life would even be a willing part of an organization which promoted the preservation of life. Next, Karthus specifically eschews the accrual of power and influence gained through service to the League; he is essentially an unpaid volunteer. This behavior is completely different than what his life outside of the League would have onlookers believe. Karthus has never spoken about his intentions in being a champion of the League, and in fact becomes quite agitated when asked about it. In the interests of not aggravating a lich, most sensible people subsequently drop the issue. Patch history : ** No longer reduces Armor. ** Magic resist reduction adjusted to 15% instead of flat 15/20/25/30/35. V1.0.0.142: * : cooldown increased to 200/180/160 seconds from 180/150/120. V1.0.0.131: * On Dominion only, Karthus' respawn timer will now start when ends. V1.0.0.130: * : **Wall duration reduced to 5 seconds from 7. **Now only affects a target once (instead of reapplying every pass through). *Fixed a bug where Leona's passive and the Dominion center Sigil could cause an immediate double kill against Karthus. V1.0.0.126 * Fixed a bug where would sometimes not finish channeling when cast during . V1.0.0.118 * : ** Duration reduced to 7 seconds from 8. ** It no longer reduces your respawn time. * : ability power ratio reduced to 0.6 from 0.7. V1.0.0.105: * Clarified 's tooltip slightly to emphasize that target movement speeds are restored over time. V1.0.0.103: * : ** Now allows all spells to be free to cast while defying death. ** Fixed several usability bugs. * : mana cost reduced to 20/26/32/38/44 from 20/28/36/44/52. * : cooldown reduced to 18 from 22. V1.0.0.101: * : ** It now also grants 20% death timer reduction to compensate for the 8 seconds Karthus is active after dying. ** The code has been remade to fix some bugs and usability issues. V1.0.0.100: * : level up tooltip now correctly states the increased slow amount. V1.0.0.99: * : mana cost reduced to 150/175/200 from 200/300/400. V1.0.0.86: * Fixed a bug with the tooltip for to display the correct ability power ratio. V1.0.0.75: * Updated the icon for to be more reflective of the ability. V1.0.0.70: * Base armor per level increased to 3.5 from 3.0. * : ** Range increased to 875 from 825. ** Mana cost decreased to 20/28/36/44/52 from 24/32/40/48/54. V1.0.0.63: * Basic attack projectile speed increased to 1200 from 800. * no longer reveals Karthus to enemies when cast. * : ** Ability power ratio increased to 0.3 from 0.25. ** Damage increased to 40/60/80/100/120 from 35/55/75/95/115. * : ability power ratio increased to 0.25 from 0.2. V1.0.0.61: * : ability power ratio increased to 0.25 from 0.2. V1.0.0.52: * : ability power ratio is now correct. * Fixed a bug with where it was slowing units 2 second after the particle had faded. V1.0.0.32: * : mana cost decreased to 24/32/40/48/54 from 25/35/45/55/65. * : mana cost decreased to 30/42/54/66/78 from 30/45/60/75/90. V0.9.25.34: * Updated secondary/critical strike animations. V0.9.25.24: * Karthus can no longer outrange . V0.9.25.21: * : ** Improved visibility and removed bugs causing it to not appear correctly. ** Duration reduced to 7 from 9. ** Made it more difficult to move through without being slowed. * : mana cost increased to 30/45/60/75/90 from 30/40/50/60/70. * : mana cost increased to 25/35/45/55/65 from 24/32/40/48/54. * : duration reduced to 8 from 10. V0.9.22.16: * : ** Ability power ratio reduced to 0.6 from 0.7. ** will no longer stop the spell. * : mana cost increased to 24/32/40/48/54 from 18/26/34/42/50. * : ** Mana regeneration on kill modified to 20/27/34/41/48 from 15/25/35/45/55. ** Removed the kill a champion mana regen effect. ** Increased mana cost to 30/40/50/60/70 from 25/35/45/55/65. V0.9.22.15: * Base damage increased to 44 from 39. * : no longer costs double mana upon casting. * : range reduced to 825 from 900. * : now shows a new wall targeting cursor. V0.8.21.110: * : AoE increased to 200 from 185. July 10, 2009 Patch: * : damage increased to 250/400/550 from 200/350/550. June 26, 2009 Patch: * : now correctly shows buff tooltips. * : cooldown reduced to 0.5 from 1 sec. * : slow modified to 40/50/60/70/80% from 80%. June 19, 2009 Patch: * : ** Damage increased to 35/55/75/95/115 from 30/50/70/90/110. ** Corrected tool-tip to say that it deals double damage if it hits a single target (corrected numbers in tool-tip as well). * : ** Ability power ratio reduced to 0.7 from 0.75. ** Can no longer be cast while dead. * : damage increased to 30/50/70/90/110 from 20/40/60/80/100. * : ** Cast range reduced to 1000 from 1200. ** Magic resistance and armor reduction reduced to 15/20/25/30/35 from 20/25/30/35/40. ** Duration reduced to 9 from 12 sec (and it no longer lingers after the particle fades). ** Cooldown reduced to 22 from 25 sec. June 12, 2009 Patch: Added * : A 1 second cooldown spell which leaves a time delayed mine that deals double damage if it only hits a single target. * : Stretches a perpendicular wall through the target location, enemies who walk through it are slowed and take increased damage. * : While toggled on, Defile continually damages nearby enemies. While off, Karthus regains mana whenever he kills a unit. * : (Ultimate) Channeling spell, upon successful cast Karthus damages all enemy champions in the game. * : (Passive) When Karthus dies, he can continue to cast spells for 10 seconds after death. If he kills a champion in this time he respawns instantly at base. }} Category:Champion backgrounds